KABUL: The World Food Programme (WFP) said on Sunday that it has started delivering "life-saving food" to over 20,000 Afghan families displaced by the conflict with Pakistan, warning "further instability will push millions into hunger."
Families who fled their homes will initially receive fortified biscuits to address "urgent" hunger, with the ready-to-eat rations intended to support people forced to flee and with limited access to cooking facilities.
In the coming weeks, the most vulnerable households will receive additional assistance, including two months' worth of food or cash support, the UN agency said.
Months of cross-border clashes between Afghanistan and Pakistan have flared again since February 26.
Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of failing to act against militant groups that carry out attacks in Pakistan, which the Taliban government rejects.
The UN said on Friday that at least 75 civilians have been killed and 193 injured in Afghanistan as a result of the clashes.
"Despite the dangerous conditions in the area, WFP has resumed operations in most border areas," it said in a statement.
"Afghanistan is caught between two conflicts, and any further instability will push millions deeper into hunger while adding strain to a region already on the brink", stressed John Aylieff, WFP country director in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan also has a border with Iran, which has been struck by US and Israeli strikes, forcing the return of Afghan migrants to their homeland.
Nearly half of Afghanistan -- 21.9 million people -- will need humanitarian aid this year, the UN said before the conflict with Pakistan flared up.
"The escalation of conflicts in the Middle East" and the closure of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border since last October pose "serious challenges" to the humanitarian response, WFP underlined.
The UN agency is trying to secure an alternative route for supplies to Afghanistan through Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea, and Turkmenistan.